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(No Model.) I 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

G. W. COOPER. Refrigerator Car.

No. 230,615. Patented'Aug. 3,1880.

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(N M d l.) s Sheets-Sheet .3."

G. W. GO0PER.

Refrigerator Car.

No. 230,615. PatentedAug. 3,1880.

I m en/tor.-

N-PETF-RS. PHOTO UTNOGRAPHEIL WAsNlNGYON D C UNITED STATES PATENTCHARLES W. COOPER, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

REFRIGERATOR-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 230,615, dated August3, 1880.

Application filed March 13, 1880. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES WILLIAM COOPER, of Brooklyn, in the countyof Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and ImprovedRefrigerator-Gar, of which the following is aspecification. I

My invention relates to improvements in the construction and arrangementof refrigerating apparatus for railway-cars and other recepta cles usedin the transportation or retention of meat, vegetables, and otherarticlesliable to damage by heat, by which apparatus the air of the caror receptacle can be kept cool during transit or otherwise without theuse of ice.

For the purposes of my invention I avail myself of the principle'used inmany processes in the manufacture of artificial ice and for coolingstationary chambers, rooms, 866., viz), the alternate evaporation andcondensation of some extremely volatile liquid. In these processes theliquid in evaporating becomes intensely cold, and in doing so it absorbsthe heat from the surrounding air, and on being recondensed it partswith said heat, which is absorbed by a surrounding cooling medium, afterwhich said liquid is again evaporated, and a further absorption of heatensues, and so on continuously.

The object of my invention is to arrange an apparatus operating on theprinciple I have just stated, so that the evaporation of the liquid willtake place within the refrigerating-chamber of the car, and the heatfrom the said chamber will be absorbed and the atmosphere of the saidchamber thereby maintained at a low temperature, and the condensation ofthe liquid and the dispersion of the heat will take place outside of therefrigerating-chamber.

My invention consists, essentially, of a sys tem of pipes arrangedwithin the refrigerating chamber, which pipes are connected with asystem of pipes outside of said chamber by in-i let and outlet pipes soarranged that the liquid in the inside pipes is in condensed form forcedinto the outside pipes, where it is cooled, and in the inlet-pipe is acontracted point or valve, which permits but a limited part of theliquid from the outsidepipe to pass to the inside pipes, so that the twosystems of pipes are divided at one side by the contracted space orvalve and at the other side by a pump for condensin g the liquid.Apartial vacuumis maintained in the inside system of pipes, in whichpartial vacuum the evaporation of the liquid takes place.

The invention also consists of details of construction andarrangern'ent, which will be fully and specifically described furtheron.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a sectional sideelevation of a car provided with an inside and outside system oftransversely a semi-cylindrical tank, B, with partly closed ends toadapt it to hold a liquid. The cylinder of which the tank forms a partis completed by a semi-cylindrical cover, B, which, when closed, formswith the tank B a cylindrical chamber, D, with a little more than theupper half of one end, a, open, while the opposite 'end, I), is providedwith a central circular opening, (1, as shown clearly in Fig. 2.

E represents a ceutral'dru m, around which are arranged a number ofother drums, E, each of which is connected with the central drum, E, bytwo short tubes, 6 6, near the ends, the tubes 6 being longer than thetubes 0 to prevent a return flow. Between the two sets ofconnecting-tubes e c the central drum is provided with a verticalpartition or diaphragm, f, which divides the said drum into twochambers, g h, the former one being the inlet-chamber and the latter theoutlet-chamber. "The system of drums E E is placed within thecylindrical chamber D, where it is supported by the pipes e c, orsuitable braces on the central drum, E, so as to revolve freely togetherwith the drum E.

In each head of the central drum, E, is placed axially a tube or pipe,01, which projects outside of the corresponding end of the said chamberD. On one side of the car (inside) is fixed vertically a pipe or tube,F, the upper end, 7', whereof projects throughthe car-roof, while thelower end is provided with a right-angular elbow, Z, which aligns withthe tube 13 projecting from the adjacent end of the drum. The end of thesaid tube 6 and the elbow lare made to communicate with each otherthrough the hub or eye of a pulley-wheel, G, which wheel is fixed to thetube '5, but turns freelyin or on the end of the elbow 1.

On the opposite side of the car is a vertical pipe or tube, F, andhaving its upper end, m, carried through the roof of the car, and itslower end provided with an elbow, n, aligned with the pipe 2' projectingfrom the end or head of the drum E on this side.

The elbow n is entered intothe side of a pump barrel, H, so as tocommunicate with the interior of the said barrel, and from the oppositeside of the pump-barrel a tube, 0, projects, which is provided with athimble, 19, into which is entered ,the end of the pipe 2', which isthus furnished with a bearing on this side.

The two pipes 11 t are thus both furnished with hearings, on which theyare permitted to rotate freely, and with them the system of drums E E inthe chamber D. At the same time communication from the pipe F to theinterior of the drum E and drums E, and from the chamber h of the drum Ethrough the pump-barrel, and to the tube or pipe F, is uninterrupted.The tube or. pipe F forms the inlet-pipe for the drums E E, and the pipeF is the outlet-pipe from the same.

011 the inlet side a blower, I, is hung loose on the pipe 2', within thecasin of the chamber D, the purpose of which is to blow a current orcurrents of air through the chamber D, around the drums E E, and out atthe opposite end of chamber D.

On top of the car, outside, are a series of circulating-pipes, J,communicating with each other, and connecting on one side with theprojectin g end at of the outlet-pipe F, and on the opposite side withthe projecting end j of the inlet-pipe F, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

The inlet-pipe F is provided with a valve, q, to regulate the flow ofliquid from the outside pipes J through the inlet-pipe F the purpose ofwhich is to reduce the quantity of liquid flowing through the inletpipeF below the quantity which the capacity of the pipes J would otherwisesupply to the said pipe F. This valve may be regulated by hand; but,instead of the valve, the pipe may be contracted at one part of itslength to produce the same effect.

L is a shaft supported in suitable bearin gs, and rotated by a belt, 0',or other connection with a wheel, 8, on one of the car-axles, so thatwhen the car is in motion the said shaft L will be revolved, and will,in turn, rotate, through a belt, i running over the pulleys t and G, thesystem of drums E E, and through the pulley a, belt a, and pulley e onthe hub of the blower I, rotating the said blower independently of thepipe 6, on which the hub of said blower is loosely placed.

On theend of the shaft L is a crank, M, which is connected by means of apitman with the piston-rod w of the pump H, for the purpose of operatingthe piston of the pump.

The operation of the improvement is as folthe valve q, the liquid passesinto the inlet-,

pipe, and thence through the pipe 01 into the drum E, where there is apartial vacuum produced by the action of the pump. In the partial vacuumthe volatile liquid immediately vaporizes, and acertain proportion ofthe heat in the ear is absorbed, whereby the atmosphere of the car iscooled. The blower 1 draws the air of the chamber through the opening dand drives it through the chamber D around the drums E E, and expels itfrom the open end a, and thus theair around the drums is constantlychanged and cooled. The vapor from the chamber 9 of the central drum, E,passes through the short tubes 0 into the surrounding drums E, (thepartition f prevents it from passing directly to the chamber 7b,) andthe vapor is drawn by the action of the pump from the drums E, throughtubes 0, into the chamber h, and thence through the other pipe '5 intothe pump-barrel, from which it is expelled by the action of the pumpthrough the outlet-pipe F into the circulating-pipes J, the pumpsserving also to condense the liquid, which, by the cooling action of thecirculating outside air, parts with its excess of heat. Thence it passesover to the inlet-pipe F, as before described. The action of the pump isto maintain apartial vacuum in the drums E E, and to condense the liquidin the pipe F and pipes J, also to keep up the proper circulation ofsaid liquid, inthe manner described.

In case the system of outside condensingpipes and inside vaporizingpipes or drums be applied to a building or other stationary object forrefrigerating purposes, artificially-produced currents of air producedby blowers or other such means must be employed to cool the liquid inthe circulating-pipes J, and power must be supplied from an engine orother apparatus to operate the blower I and system of drums E E and thepumps.

To prevent ice from incrusting the exposed outside surfaces of the drumsE E, the tank B may be supplied with a liquid that freezes at a very lowtemperature, (glycerine for example,) into which the drums E E will dipas they revolve and become lined with the said liquid.

The roof T of the car serves as a partition between the two "sets'ofpipes, the one containing the condensed liquid from which the heat is tobe removed by the action of the aircurrents, while the other containsthe expanded liquid which is to absorb the heat from the receptacle tobe cooled.

As far as this branch'of the invention is concerned, the interior pipesmay be ordinary pipes placed under said root T; but I prefer to use thedrums E E dipping into the projectingliquid in the tank B, to preventthe injurious accumulation of ice on the outer side of said inner systemof pipes.

I do not claim surrounding pipes which contain a cooling medium entirelywith a liquid which is intended to prevent ice from forming on saidpipes.

I claim 1. The cooling-chamber A, containing the pipes F F and theconnecting-pipes or drums, in combination with pipes J outside of saidchamber, and with the pump H, all the parts being arranged within thechamber to be cooled except the pipes J, substantially as herein shownand described.

2. In combination with the wall T of achamher, the drums or passages EE, the inlet-pipe F, provided with the valve or contraction q,theoutlet-pipe'F, and pump H, all on one side of said wall, and the outsidecirculating-pipes, J, on the opposite side of said wall, substantiallyas described.

3. In combination with the revolving drums E E, the open-ended tank Band blower I, substantially as described.

4:. The central drum, E, provided with the partition f and pipes 11 t,which connect on one side with the pump-barrel H and on the oppositeside with the inlet-pipe F, in combination with the outside drums, E,with which the drum E is connected by the tubes or pipes 12 0, leadingrespectively from chamber 9 and into chamber h, substantially asdescribed.

5. The combination of the system" of drums E E, connected with thepulley G, the'blower I, provided with the pulley v, the pump H,

and shaft L, having pulleys and crank M, with the caraxle and suitableconnecting belts ordevices, for the purpose of communicating motion fromone of thevcar-axles to the drums, blower, and pump, substantially asdescribed.

6. In a refrigerating apparatus, the roof or partition T of an inclosedchamber, which partition is interposed between the system of pipes thatcontain the heat-absorbing medium inclosed in one chamber and the systemof pipes that contain the heat-discharging medium, the two systems ofpipes communicating with each other, substantially as specified.

CHAS. W. COOPER.

Witnesses:

A. v. BRIESEN, WILLY G. E. SCHULTZ.

